The Virtual Womantm

The Virtual Woman: A Woman's Weekly Guide To Cyberspace

Winter has definitely arrived here in San Francisco. I spotted a few
mushrooms growing beneath my keyboard. Always a sign. And while not as cold
as our summer, it is rainier in the winter. I try and view all of this
positively: At least rain requires no shoveling. We also have a nice Fall
out here. There is this one beautiful native tree that changes colors up
north in Mill Valley. People travel from all parts to see The Tree. (My
east coast roots are showing, I can tell). But seriously, itís hard to
stomach these wimpy seasons relative to the full fledged ones many of you
have out there. But Iíll get over it. One trip back to Buffalo, one small
breath of bone chilling air, and Iím cured and singing about leaving my
heart back in San Francisco (despite delays in retrieving it due to
horrendous traffic jams). Okay. Enough. This week, as usual, youíve sent
me some great questions and Iíve got some great websites for you. Keep
those emails coming, write to me, cheer me up!

Dear Virtual Woman:

For the last few years
I've been running a small gift basket business out of
my garage. After much hard work, juggling time, and sacrifice from my family
the biz is finally turning a profit. My questions to you are: Do you think I
should take the plunge and dive into developing a website or am I just too
small for the internet? And what are some of the pitfalls I need to avoid?

-
Betty's Baskets in Baltimore

Dear Betty:

Developing a profitable business is no small feat, congratulations!! And
nope, you are not too small to benefit from using the internet (but you knew
I'd say that). There are, however, a few things to consider before bringing
your baskets into cyberspace. Achieving success on the net generally
depends on effort, resources and the amount of time you devote to your
website. Since this is your first internet venture I suggest you take the
sound advice of some people who understand. Log onto
Marketing Tips at the
International Small Business Consortium
http://www.isbc.com/business/net-mkt.htm. These experts have pointers
dealing with creating a web image and tailoring content to your target
audience.

The folks at ISBC say one of the most common pitfalls small businesses fall
into is believing that once their site is up the job is done. Not so. Think
of your website as a favorite magazine with devoted readers always looking
forward to the next issue. Giving your visitors the incentive to come back
means continually putting out fresh content and doing regular updates to
your site. If an online offshoot to your business sounds a bit too time
consuming and elaborate for you right now, the web can be used to get ideas
about running your biz in RL (real life). Surf over to
Idea Site for Business
http://www.ideasiteforbusiness.com/ideamenu.htm where
the main menu provides access to 206 Marketing Ideas, free for your own
personal business use.

Dear Virtual Woman:

It seems lately
there's a credit card craze going. I'm forever getting offers for low rate
cards in my snail mail. Is there a place online to find out which cards are
legit?

-
Perusing For Plastic,
Santa Monica, CA

Dear Peruser:

A good jumping off point for your credit card curiosity is the Credit
Card section at
Bank Rate
Monitor (http://www.bankrate.com/brm/rate/cc_home.asp?web=brm). Bank
Rate Monitor is a site high on my list for independent financial
information. In another section called, "Which Credit Card Is Best For You"
(http://www.bankrate.com/brm/calc/cc_smm.asp#fees) you can read an
explanation of credit card hidden fees and interest rates. Armed with that
information, go back to the Credit Card section and click on the start
button in the "Find the Best Rate For You" area. Fill in the blanks and Bank
Rate Monitor will come up with several several card suggestions. This site
is updated frequently, and the navigation changes slightly, but it's all in
the name of bringing you the latest and best rates available. And for those
of you really hooked on discovering the best credit card rate, go ahead and
sign up for a free email alert at
http://www.bankrate.com/brm/publ/webalertbrm.asp and get notified right away
of changes in the personal finance industry.

Dear Virtual Woman:

My husband is being transferred
out of state which means we'll all be relocating. We have three school age
children, one in elementary, one in middle school and our oldest is about to
graduate from high school. Since I don't know anyone in our new city, is
there an online way to get the scoop on schools in the area?

-
Carol M.,Boston, MA

Dear Carol:

Schoolmatch School Directory
http://www.schoolmatch.com is a commercial service providing information on
every public and accredited private school in the United States. You can
search the directory by state, city, zip code or school name. Once you find
your niche, School Match will sell you a report (for a very reasonable fee)
on enrollment, class sizes, and test scores. The Supplementary Information
Center offers a glossary of educational terms and some general statistics on
education. Good luck getting settled in your new home town!